Following the recent development of prosecutors in Arizona filing extortion charges against a woman who accused Trevor Bauer of sexual assault, it appears that the former Los Angeles Dodgers star and Cy Young Award winner is making progress towards vindication.
According to Alison Triessl, a legal analyst and criminal defense attorney for KTLA 5 News, that is the assessment.
A grand jury in Maricopa County last month issued a two-count indictment against Darcy Adanna Esemonu, who is now facing criminal charges.
Bauer acknowledges engaging in a sexual relationship with the former pageant winner in 2020, asserting that it was consensual. According to Bauer and his lawyers, Esemonu later stated that she was pregnant and requested a significant sum of money, including funds for an abortion.
In 2023, Esemonu took legal action against Bauer, alleging that the sexual encounter was not consensual after he refused to pay the requested amount.
According to his lawyers, Bauer, 33, ended up paying Esemonu $8,761 after believing she was pregnant. She then used the money for a trip to Philadelphia to undergo LASIK surgery.
According to Triessl, the grand jury and prosecutors concluded that Esemonu was not pregnant and was not a victim.
“The prosecution will claim and Trevor Bauer will testify, that this was simply an attempt to extort money.” Triessl told KTLA’s Samantha Cortese that he believed it was just a shakedown.
Esemonu filed a lawsuit following allegations made by Lindsey Hill, who claimed that Bauer had raped and assaulted her at his residence in Pasadena, a suburb of Los Angeles, in 2021. As a result of that case, the MLB decided to place the Dodgers star on administrative leave.
Bauer faced a suspension of 324 games, but an independent arbitrator later reduced it to 194 games in December 2022. Following Bauer’s suspension, the Dodgers made the decision to release him, and unfortunately, he did not receive any offers from other teams.
In October 2023, Bauer released a video in which he defended himself and presented evidence that Hill had fabricated her story for financial gain. No charges were filed, and Bauer and Hill eventually resolved their defamation lawsuits.
However, Bauer has not played in a Major League Baseball game since 2021 and is currently pitching for Diablos Rojos del Mexico of the Mexican League.
“It is undeniable that his name and reputation have been tarnished, which is likely why MLB has chosen to distance themselves from him,” Triessl commented. “It is important for them to give serious consideration to these cases involving Lindsey Hill and the newly indicted woman, and thoroughly examine the details.”
Although Bauer admits that two more women have made allegations against him, none of them have resulted in civil lawsuits or criminal prosecutions.
Triessl thinks that all professional players should take a lesson from Bauer’s situation.
Probably the most important lesson to learn from all of this is that some women will attempt to trick you into giving them money through extortion. And they have the power to ruin your professional sports career if they publicize these allegations and damage your reputation.”
